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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. field — farmland
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. rest — what's left
  6. last — final
  7. rush — hurry
  8. last — finally
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. rest — a break
  11. object — to protest
  12. mine — for digging
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. last — to go on
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. object — an aim
  17. object — a thing
  18. lie — to recline
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. rest — what's left
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. field — a subject
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. lie — an untruth

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com